by Robin Roseau
"Is it a mistake to allow Angel on your security detail?"
"It wouldn't matter who was there," I said. "Tell me Lara would have handled that differently and I will apologize."
"She would have," Eric said. "If she had been there tonight, that asshole would be dead now."
"Serena?" I asked.
"I am going to get my ass chewed, Michaela," she said.
"Do you believe I should have let you drive us away as you intended?"
"Our responsibility is to protect you," Serena replied.
"Your responsibility is to protect the pack," I countered. "They're pack."
"You know that's not how Lara or Elisabeth see it. It's not how I see it."
"If I were Lara, would you have ordered me into the car?"
"I don't know, Michaela. But you aren't Lara."
I smiled. "I know. My body count is much, much higher."
"It's not a joke," she said.
"How much trouble are you going to be in?"
"Quite a bit."
"I'm sorry about that."
"I'd rather be in a lot of trouble than tell Francesca we left her daughter to face her half of six drunk wolves," Serena said.
"They wouldn't have done anything," Angel said.
"They were looking for a fight," Eric said.
"I agree," said Portia.
"That ended about as good as it was going to," Serena said. "But I have to report it. Lara and Elisabeth are going to chew both our asses, Michaela."
"I can hold my head high," I said. "One of us should call Elisabeth."
"I will," Serena said. She fished out her phone. She held a tense conversation with Elisabeth while I collected my knives from Angel, replacing them in their sheaths on my wrists.
I heard Elisabeth say, "Let me talk to the fox."
I held out my hand, and Serena set the phone into it.
"Everything is fine, Elisabeth," I said. "I need a run when I get back, and if you want to chew my ass afterwards, fine."
"Serena needs to write a report," she said. "Take two enforcers with you." She paused. "I'm not talking to yell at you. I am calling to ask what you want me to do."
"Get their names from Angel. If Reed's apology is sufficiently contrite, I will consider the matter over. Otherwise he is banished. Will Lara override me?"
"She would have him beaten, but she won't override you."
"Where is Lara?"
"We'll be another hour. Have a good run."
I handed the phone back to Serena and stared dully out the window.
Surprise
"How badly do I smell?" I asked as we pulled into the compound.
"Pretty bad," Angel said. "But it didn't start until we got in the car."
"Serena, Elisabeth wants you to write up the report and told me to take two enforcers for my run. I'll shower afterwards. Will you approve Angel and Scarlett? I don't want to wait for anyone else."
"Long run?"
"Half hour."
"You'll remain on pack territory."
"Absolutely."
"That's fine."
"Thank you. Angel, call Scarlett."
Eric parked the SUV, and by the time we had climbed out of the car, Angel had completed her call with Scarlett. "She's on the way."
"Thank you, Angel," I said. I turned to Serena. "I know I stink."
She knew what I wanted and pulled me into another hug. She was still holding me when Scarlett arrived, and then I had both her and Angel clustered around me.
"What happened?"
"We ran into Reed and his friends," Angel said.
"That fucking asshole," Scarlett said. She never talked like that.
I pushed away from Serena. "Thank you," I told her. She nodded.
"Scarlett, you are a temporary enforcer. You are watching over Michaela, not playing with Angel. Do you both understand what that means?"
"Yes, Serena," Scarlett said.
"Go on, then. If Lara and Elisabeth get here before you're back, I'll send them out to find you."
I loosened my clothing and shifted into fox, then stood and waited for Angel and Scarlett. They didn't lose two thirds of their size when they shifted to wolf, so they actually had to disrobe or risk tangling in their clothing. I left mine in a pile, and I saw Portia pick it all up for me.
I pointed my nose north and headed towards the woods, Angel and Scarlett flanking me.
We ran at my top speed for twenty minutes before I collapsed in a heap near the extreme northern edge of the pack property. Neither of the wolves was even panting. My top speed was an easy lope for an adult werewolf. They both stood over me while I caught my breath.
I wasn't particularly paying attention, so I didn't notice when Angel went on alert, but suddenly she began growling, stalking slowly forward. After the briefest pause, Scarlett joined her, and the two of them stood, side-by-side, their hackles raised, growling loudly.
I jumped to my feet and swiveled my ears, trying to hear whatever it was they were growling at. I didn't hear a thing except the two of them. If there was something close enough for them to smell it, I should hear it, even over their growls.
Then Scarlett stopped growling and instead raised her nose to the sky and began to howl. It wasn't a victory call.
It was a howl for help.
Now I definitely couldn't hear anything. I had no idea what was going on.
But they were scaring me, a primal fear. There were two angry wolves, and while they were two of my dearest friends, I suddenly was filled with fear.
But I moved closer. If we were in trouble, safety was to the south, the direction they were facing, and without knowing what the danger was, I couldn't make any decisions.
Angel turned around and snapped at me, driving me back.
She had never done that before. As soon as I backed away, she turned back towards the south, her growl becoming even more fierce. Scarlett continued to howl, calling for help.
But we were six miles from the compound. Would anyone hear her? There were a lot of trees between the compound and us, and six miles is a long way for a voice to carry.
There was a noise behind me, and then a flash of something in the corner of my eye. I began turning to look, but firm arms wrapped around me, lifting me from the ground. An instant later, the world was flashing past us, far, far faster than I had ever traveled.
I immediately began growling and yipping. I bit the arms holding me. I squirmed. I struggled. But the arms only tightened firmer around me, holding me pressed against a chest.
I tried to crane my neck and bite whoever was behind me, but one of the hands reached up and wrapped around my muzzle.
Only a few seconds had elapsed since the arms had grabbed me, and I had no idea where we were. The world continued to pass in a blur. I whimpered and struggled. Whoever held me was significantly stronger than I was and was able to hold me firmly without hurting me.
So I shifted into human. I did a slow shift, taking two or three seconds instead of doing it instantly; I was worried I would have my face or chest crushed.
If I surprised my captor, I couldn't tell. He adjusted his grip around my chest, the other hand shifting to my hair, holding my head firmly.
I began screaming and kicking. In the distance, I heard two wolves howling, but I couldn't believe how distant the sound was.
Nothing I did mattered.
I tried slamming my head backwards, but the hand in my hair was stronger than I was. I tried kicking upwards with my heels, but I couldn't connect. I tried squirming.
With two hands, I grabbed one finger on the hand holding my chest and tried to peel the hand off me, perfectly willing to break the finger.
The creature simply curled it's fingers more tightly into my side, and I couldn't even get a proper grip.
I shifted back to fox, an instant shift, hoping the creature would drop me, but he adjusted his grip around my chest without a pause in our frantic dash through the forest. The hand that had been in my hair wra
pped back in front of me and grabbed my muzzle again, cutting off most of the sounds I tried to make.
Then, suddenly, we came to a stop on the road. There was an SUV parked on the side of the road, and we came to a stop at the back. The creature released my mouth and opened the door, and I saw a glimpse of the outside of a small cage, barely big enough to hold me while in fur.
"You're going in the cage," someone said into my ear. "You will fit better in this form, but either way, you're going into the cage." A moment later, he shoved me into the cage and had the door slammed closed and latched before I could turn around and attack his hands. I got my first good glimpse at whoever had taken me.
It was male and looked, by and large, human. His skin was exceptionally pale, and he appeared to be about average size for a man. I guessed his age in the forties.
I launched myself at the door of the cage, snapping and snarling with every bit of venom I had. It didn't even faze him. Instead, he casually applied a padlock to the cage latch and then added several more around the perimeter of the door, latching it closed.
I continued to throw myself at the cage, but it was exceedingly sturdy, and I already knew I wasn't going to break my way out of it. He calmly finished securing the cage then looked straight at me.
"My mistress wishes to meet you," he said.
Then he smiled, and I saw the hint of fangs. I stared at him.
Vampire.
* * * *
I wore myself out throwing myself against the cage. The vampire ignored me. He didn't even order me to quiet down. It was like he didn't even realize I was there, making a racket.
He had thrown a blanket over the top of the cage before closing the back of the SUV, but my antics had slowly worked it loose until it fell down on one side of the cage. It didn't do me any good. I couldn't see anything but dark sky out of the windows.
We came to a stop. I renewed the noise I was making, but the vampire appeared to ignore me. After a moment, we were moving again. We drove for only a minute or two, slowly and making a number of turns.
I had no idea where we were.
We came to another stop. The vampire shut off the car and climbed out. A moment later, the back door of the SUV opened, and I could see past him. We were in an airport hangar. A moment later, a second person joined him, this one female, and I was sure she was a vampire, too.
"All this trouble for a fox?" she asked.
"Werefox," the male said. "The mistress wants to meet her."
I threw myself at the cage, knowing it was futile, slamming myself into it over and over.
The male crouched down until our eyes were on a level. "You have a choice. If you calm down, I will let you hear what it is. Otherwise I will choose for you, and it will be the least pleasant choice for you."
I threw myself at the cage twice more and hissed at him, but then I lay down and put my head between my paws.
"Very good," he said. "We have a private jet." He gestured, but when I looked, I couldn't see it. "If you agree to be quiet, you may ride in the passenger cabin. If you are going to continue this racket, you will ride in the baggage area. The entire aircraft is pressurized, but the baggage area will be colder and, I understand, much louder."
From a crouch, I threw myself at the cage, angry beyond any compare.
"So be it," he said, standing up. He reached along the side of the cage. I redirected my attack, but again, he didn't even flinch. Instead, he picked up two metal pipes. Working calmly, he slid one pipe between the bars of the cage near the top, threading the pipe in one side of the cage and back out the other side. The female stepped up to the opposite side, and the two used the pipe as a handle on the cage, beginning to pull me from the SUV. A moment later he slid the second pipe through in a similar fashion, but at the extreme back of the cage. They pulled me from the back of the car, set me on the floor, then slammed the tailgate closed.
After that, they carried me to the aircraft. It was a sleek jet, and I was immediately envious. The carried me to the nose of the jet, set me down again, and after a moment, the woman opened a door in the side of the nose. They picked me up and slid the cage into a small forward baggage compartment, pulling the pipes out of the cage as they pushed me firmly inside.
Without another word, she closed the baggage door, and I was left in utter darkness.
I went into a rage.
* * * *
I lost all track of time. It was the most unpleasant airplane ride I had ever experienced.
I was consumed by a small number of overwhelming thoughts, the worst of which was simply, "Not again."
I didn't make a dent in the cage. It was far studier than a standard cage that would be used for a more mundane animal, and I decided it must have been made for me. Someone had gone to a significant amount of work to capture me.
If the vampire mistress wanted to meet me, why hadn't she just made an appointment?
I didn't like any of the answers to that question.
But I knew this: I was in deep trouble.
I wondered if I would ever see Lara and the babies again.
I'd already had a bad night, but if it had been bad leaving the restaurant, this was far worse.
I hoped Angel and Scarlett were okay. I hope Lara didn't take out her anger on them.
By the time we landed, I was a wreck, emotionally and physically. I hadn't had anything to drink since leaving the restaurant, and I had expended a significant amount of energy trying to break the cage. I had tried brute force, but I had also tried foxier ways to escape the cage. Try as I might, I couldn't reach any of the locks holding the door closed.
After a while, lost between anger and despair, I faded away.
I came alert when we began our descent. From the forward baggage area, there wasn't much engine noise, but there was significant wind noise, and I heard when that changed, and I felt the angle of the aircraft dip. Still, lying in the cage in the dark, it seemed like a long time before I heard the sound of wheels landing on concrete. We came to a stop, and then after a moment, began rolling again.
It must have been a major airport. We taxied for some time, making a number of turns, before we came to a stop and the sound of the engines faded away entirely. A few minutes later, there was clanging from outside, and we were moving again, slowly. I decided we were being towed into a hangar.
We turned, rolled backwards, and after a minute or two came to another stop. There was more clanging, and I heard the tow tug drive away. Then it was quiet.
I sat in the dark for several more minutes before the hatch opened. I saw the female vampire first, and beyond her the man. I immediately hissed at both of them, but I didn't have the energy to throw myself at the bars any longer.
They didn't bother talking to me. The pulled me from the aircraft the same way they loaded me, and moments later, I was in the back of another SUV. The male threw another blanket over my cage, but this time he tucked it in underneath the cage so it wouldn't fall off so easily. Two minutes later, we were on our way.
I lay quietly, my head between my paws.
I didn't know where we were, only that it was much warmer than Wisconsin in April. I didn't think we had flown internationally, although I hadn't gotten a look at the license tag of the car when they had loaded me. I should have been more observant, and mentally, I kicked myself.
But I didn't think the flight had been overseas. I didn't think a jet of that size was designed for nonstop transatlantic flight. We could be in Mexico, but I thought somewhere in the southern United States was more likely. Beyond that, I couldn't have told you.
Our drive was perhaps a half hour. The blanket wasn't so thick to block every bit of light, but I couldn't see a thing except for the occasional shadow across the material, and the noises I heard told me nothing.
But I could tell when we entered an underground parking garage.
We came to a stop. I heard two doors open and close and a moment later, the rear door opened.
"We're here," the ma
le said.
I hissed at him and threw myself against the door of the cage, but it was halfhearted.
If I ever got a stake in my hands, though, he better look out. If I can kill werewolves, I can kill vampires.
They shifted the cage, peeling the blanket up from the back, and then the pipe slid across at the back. They dropped the blanket back in place. There was a slight gap at the corners, but I couldn't see much. They did the same at the front, and I thought perhaps they used more than one blanket. Then they lifted me from the car.
I tried to peer through the gap, but I only caught glimpses, seeing almost nothing. I threw myself against the edges of the cage, but it didn't accomplish anything. But at least they knew I wasn't done fighting.
It wasn't a long walk, only a few minutes. We entered into what was, by the sound of it, a sturdy building of some sort, passing through two more solid doors before they set me down. I tried to look around, but all I could see was the edge of a metal door and a section of wall.
The male walked away. The female stayed with me, but when she wasn't moving, she was utterly silent.
She had no heartbeat.
And suddenly all the pieces came together. It had been the vampire I had heard, and then not heard. They had no heartbeats, and with her still, I couldn't hear anything. No heart beating, no blood pumping through veins, no lungs breathing air.
She was, in other words, my worst nightmare: an enemy I couldn't hear.
I tracked the male, however. He left the room by a different door than we had entered, paused, and then spoke.
"I have her."
I heard another voice, a woman. "Bring her in. Don't keep her waiting."
"Yes, Mistress," the male said. I heard him return, and a moment later, the two vampires picked up my cage. They strode forward and set me back down on the floor.
"What is that?" said the newest vampire.
"The fox," the male vampire said.
They were utterly silent for several of my heartbeats.
"Let me see," the newest vampire finally said.
They joggled my cages as the pulled the blankets off. As soon as I could see, I screamed my anger and began throwing myself against the cage in my rage.